Weekly Walk Around the News 1/18/2013

Route 16 Wallingford riders who commute to downtown Seattle will soon have a shorter metro ride by ten to twenty minutes on weekday afternoons.

The Pike/Pine Corridor was named one of America’s Top 2013 ArtPlaces. This designation is awarded to walkable communities that effectively combine art, artists, and creative venues with local business, shops, and restaurants.

Public transit riders can now use WhichBus to navigate their way around Seattle. The App allows riders to enter in their destination and arrival point and then map out a route from their current location.

The City of Seattle is currently writing a new Climate Action Plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Community members are invited to review and comment on the report and/or to share input through a survey. Also, take a few moments to watch a fun video about the importance of being green in Seattle.

National

America Walks will host the second webinar in their five-part All Things Walking Series. The Webinar, called “Follow the Leader > Successful Community Initiatives,” will take place Thursday, February 14 from 12:00 pm to 1:30 pm. The discussion will cover strategies for building successful community walking programs from national, state, and local perspectives.

A new study found a drop in injuries in New York City neighborhoods with national Safe Routes to School programs. The annual rate of injury in school-age pedestrians fell 44% during peak times for walking to school in areas with these programs, whereas there was no decrease in areas without the program.

The Citizens’ Institute on Rural Design (CIRD) is now accepting proposals from rural communities interested in hosting local workshops in 2013. CIRD helps rural communities of 50,000 of fewer who are facing design challenges. Proposals are due by Tuesday, March 5 at 2:00 pm.

Largo, Florida shares its success in enforcing the city’s pedestrian safety campaign, a program that has in been in effect since 2010. The campaign focuses on specific corridors where pedestrians were struck often, including places where buses dropped pedestrians too far from a crosswalk. The police department has also been issuing about 200 citations a month to drivers and pedestrians.

The New York City Department of Transportation has started installing neighborhood maps throughout the city to allow for easier navigation by pedestrians and bicyclists. 150 maps will be added by Spring, and each map will identify its location on the grid and provide estimated walking times to a few nearby destinations.

The Call for Session Proposals is now open for the 4th Safe Routes to School National Conference. The conference will take place August 12-15 in Sacramento, and proposals are due by February 15.

The 2013 Active Living Research conference will take place February 26-28 in San Diego. This year’s conference theme is “Achieving Change Across Sectors: Integrating Research, Policy and Practice.” Registration is currently open.

Will your home and surrounding area always be liveable? An interesting read provides important aspects to consider for those hoping to live independently in the next 10-20 years. Being within walking distance to grocery stores, public transportation, and sidewalks are all important elements.

A recent article in The Atlantic Cities argues that America is a walking disaster, with walking impossible in the majority of places. The writer shows how in some areas, pedestrians might have to detour at least a mile to use a crosswalk to arrive at a place that’s just across the busy street.